Oh Trost, You Remarkable Dipshit...

Just a quick addendum to yesterdays' post. IPPF speaks out about Brad Trosts' ill-informed rants concerning why they should get no government monies. All the info is here, but the gist of it is that if they get money for family planning and contraception, then they will most likely have to perform less abortions. How's that sit with you, Brad?

Well, I dunno... I'm still a fucking dipshit.

Great then.

Whoa Whoa Whoa!!! What The Fuck?

Okay, I've been slacking. I admit it. But life's been busy, and sometimes there's just too much stuff to write about. I mean, there's the whole retro-sexism television movement, the fact that someone out there is planning to make a movie out of the Colonel Williams case, horridly sexist advertising that's only getting worse, Tim Hudak's exploding toilet of a campaign (and personality), and the list goes on. I found myself.... temporarily overwhelmed. I'm sure some of you can relate. But once in a while something comes along that snaps you starkly back to clarity, with a white-hot supernova of rage boiling and twisting in that space below your ribcage and above your stomach. What could that thing be?

Apparently, the abortion debate has been reopened.

The one promise Harper seemed like he was going to keep that didn't totally fuck women over would be keeping the abortion debate closed. Now, I realize that there wasn't all that much to debate about for the politicians anyways, seeing as he sneakily defunded the Canadian arm of Planned Parenthood, making safe, legal abortions much more difficult to access in this country, but come ON. What the fucking fuck? Oh, wait, let me clarify something before we go on. Canada still funds Planned Parenthood, but only in countries where abortion is illegal. Wait for it, let it sink in. I know, if that isn't the most fucked of all fucked up shit, I don't know what is.

Ironically enough, this decision made about abortion by Supreme Overlord Herr Harper is causing a rift in the Conservative cabinet, which is what reopened the debate. The voice of the extra-anti-abortion movement within the Conservative ranks is MP Brad Trost, a real, honest to goodness, piece of shit. In 2009 Mr. Trosts' activities included, but were not limited to: criticizing his own governments' funding of Toronto Pride Week and the launching of the petition to defund IPPF. During the 2011 federal election campaign, Trost made news when he spoke at a Saskatchewan Pro-life Association convention and noted to the audience that the government had not renewed funding to Planned Parenthood over the previous year and urged continued support for their defunding.

So, to recap, within the Conservative caucus is an ultra-anti-abortion group that will even go over their leaders' head to keep choice out of the hands of women, going so far as to disregard Harpers' direct orders that the Canadian abortion debate remain closed. Trost and his pro-life buddies are miffed that Harper is shooting any money towards IPPF , even in countries where they're not providing abortions (y'know... kinda like this one) which is why they've taken it upon themselves to reopen the debate. Quoth Trost:

"So in reinvigorating the debate as they have by funding IPPF, you'll see more politicians like myself will be discussing the matter. In a respectful way, but it will be discussed."

Respectfully, of course. Because the Conservatives have a long and gloried history when it comes to dealing respectfully with womens' issues. With the debate reopen in todays' climate of ultra-misogyny and backlash towards feminism and female progress, things don't bode well for women and their reproductive rights. I sincerely hope Harper puts Trost in his place and keeps the abortion issue closed. That's if Harper isn't behind this whole thing to begin with. But, at the end of the day, with Planned Parenthood in Canada still defunded and a pro-life leaning government, what good would it do? We need the Conservatives out of office. Immediately. Or things will just keep getting worse by the day.

Planned Parenthood is being defunded all over the United States, as well. There is a worldwide war on abortion being waged. The war on abortion IS the war on women. What people don't seem to realize is that the war on women is the war on humanity and ultimately, humankind. Now, I am of the opinion that most people are shitty, but I still like to believe that humanity has some potential. But when I look around and see all that's going on in the world, in this country, in my backyard, my beliefs are shaken to their already crumbling foundations. When a fully cognizant. living, breathing woman is deprived of her rights so that they can be given to the embryo she (willingly or not) carries, I know something is wrong. A shocking statement to some: Women are human beings, equal to and ofttimes surpassing men, not mere walking incubators. To deny safe, legal and affordable abortion to women is to deny this statements' validity. The war on women and abortion must not be allowed to take another foothold. Now is the time to organize, mobilize and protest. These rights were hard fought for and hard won. We can't let them be taken without a fight.

I Know, I Know... I'm Back, Again...

Alright, well I'm back again, after yet another impromptu hiatus. Sorry about the laziness in posting, I was on something of a vacation. Let's get right to it.

Everybody who's anybody knows that Stephen Harper hates the ladies. Especially the Aboriginal ones. Hence all the cuts to womens' groups and such, especially ones that investigate Aboriginal women who've disappeared. The CBC is reiterating that point, just in case anyone forgot.

The gist of it is such: The Missing Women Commission of Inquiry was appointed by the provincial government last year to inquire into the conduct of police investigations of women reported missing from Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside between January 23, 1997 and February 5, 2002. But, the Commission has been essentially neutered, as it cannot inquire into ongoing investigations of missing or murdered women. I know, right? This same Commission is asking the government for the funding they need so that many First Nations groups can be represented and testify at the trial of Robert Pickton. Our governments' reply? No dice.

Basically what this all boils down to is misogyny and racism against First Nations women by our own government. Stephan Harper doesn't want to help Aboriginal women. Stephen Harper doesn't care what happened to the tens of hundreds of Aboriginal women that've gone missing along the Highway of Tears. Stephen Harper doesn't give two flying fucks if any or all of the First Nations groups can air their grievances and present their testimonies at the Pickton trial. Why? Because Stephen Harper likes white, heterosexual Christians with lots of oil money and he doesn't like much else. Well, I mean, he likes kissing up to the United States, especially when he can use their days of mourning to establish police state-like laws up here.  I hate that guy.

Aboriginal/First Nations people get the short end of the stick in Canada on the best of days. This seeming indifference to the genocide of Aboriginal women by our own government (and I mean the government is both indifferent to their plight and partially responsible for it) is appalling. I urge everyone to learn about and get involved with groups protesting, begging for better treatment of First Nations people, especially First Nations women. I think (I mean, as far as I know so far) that the Aboriginal Womens Action Network is a good place to start. I'll see if I can't provide a link later. Sorry to cut this short, but I'm back (again) and lest we forget, Stephen Harper is a knob (again).

P.S. Always and Forever, Fuck You, Sun Media News Network. Especially Ezra Levant, Kathy Shaidle and Michael Coren. Woot.

A Mans' Prison, A Womans' World

Trigger Warning: Rape discussion, street harassment

This is the post I was going to make last week. It seems kind of odd to go back to it now, because it was so fresh in my mind then, but I hope it's still poignant. It's about an observation my partner and I made while watching a movie that really got me thinking.

The other night, my partner and I watched a film titled I Love You Phillip Morris. Now, before I get into this, let me first say that we both didn't enjoy the film, and I cannot in good conscience recommend it to anyone as safe viewing. I'll link to the IMDB content advisory for those that are interested, but be advised that it does not list all of the potentially problematic scenes. Jim Carrey, is as per usual, a plastic-faced ass unable to convey any convincing emotion. His performance is made worse due to being cast opposite Ewan McGregor, who manages to outshine Carrey in every scene, showing emotion and vulnerability. This movie is supposed to be at it's core a love story, about the love of two men. However, it was written by a bunch of (I assume) straight dudes, who can only portray a homosexual relationship in heterosexual dominant/submissive terms. Carreys' character is unfeeling, brash, manipulative and is the top in every interaction, while McGregors' is effeminate, almost to the point of parody. While I could go on about how insulting this movie is to potential gay male viewers and how it is neither "romantic" nor "comedy", that's not the point of this post.

There's a scene, early in the movie, I guess, where Carreys' character is arrested and sent to jail. Once inside, he takes the "long walk" to his cell. This scene is shot from his perspective and as he walks along, the gruff male inmates on either side of him leer at him, look him up and down, assess him. My partner turned to me at this point and said "Dudes are scary."

How could I not agree?

She said that particular scene demonstrated how she, and countless other women I have no doubt, feel every time they walk down the street in the presence of men. And it is this metaphor perhaps, that would be more effective than any other in making straight douchebros understand the terror and danger that women face in todays' society. The leers. The jeers. The up-and-downs. The assessments. The catcalls. The very real threat of violence, of rape, of murder from any or all of these men, simply because you are currently in their line of sight. Every straight dude inherently fears prison. There's enough media out there showing graphic, violent male-on-male prison rape that it's been drilled into everyones' head like an equation: Go to prison = get raped.

Is this the case in reality? I'm not sure. Somehow Googling stats on "prison rape" makes me nervous about what the search might turn up. But, that's not the point. The point is, that nary a straight, white, heterosexual male makes the connection between the "long walk" scene that is repeated ad nausea in so much of his media and the street harassment he sees and most likely takes part in every day. If you're not familiar with the term street harassment, then this might be a good place to learn about it. Whatever you call it, one must remember that it doesn't take place exclusively in the streets. It happens on the bus or the train, at the office or the supermarket, the gym or the laundromat. There are men who make women uncomfortable at best in public places to announce their superiority and their belief in womens' subjugation, and they are everywhere. The "long walk" scene is a scene that most women have to play out several times every goddamn day.

Street harassment in any and all of its' forms makes women feel afraid of going out in public, which is what a patriarchy desires more than almost anything else. It's an insidious form of control, to keep women scared and in the home, becoming the property of their men, unable to leave autonomously or without escort for fear of rape or battery or death or some horrible combination of all three. This is the state of affairs that the white, "liberal" male ally will find intolerable and unjust in places like Saudi Arabia, while ignoring that much the same happens to women here in the "civilized western world" on a daily basis.

If you're reading this and you think I'm full of shit, think about it for a second. Think about a "long walk" prison scene you've watched. Now think about what if it was you taking that walk. Now, think about what if you had to take that walk several times every day, but the guards aren't there to pull the prisoners off you if they attack, and the prisoners aren't wearing uniforms so you can easily identify them and they can act in groups and perhaps they're your boss, or your landlord or your roommate. Think about it, all day every day, being looked at, being sized up, being undressed, being five seconds away from being potentially raped at all times. How would it feel? Would you feel scared? Hopeless? Helpless? Depressed? Suicidal? Do you think you know anyone else that feels that way? Have you ever made anyone else feel that way? And, if you have, will you acknowledge it and change your behavior? Because no one deserves to live in that kind of world. No one deserves to take the "long walk" over and over again, especially when they've committed no crime, save for not being a man in the patriarchy.

If the whole world is ones' prison, does one dream of escape? Where does one escape to? It is my sincerest wish that one day everyone is able to walk the streets without fear and without being harassed. Until such day though, ask the dudes you know if they're familiar with the "long walk" scene. Then ask them how they'd feel. Hopefully one of them gets it.

Rest In Peace, Jack Layton.

I was going to write about something else today. I can't remember what it was now. And I suppose that, for the moment, it doesn't really matter anyways. At 4:45 am today, New Democrat Party Leader Jack Layton passed away, losing his battle with an undisclosed type of cancer at age 61. It is said he went peacefully, at home, surrounded by his family. I wish them strength in this challenging time.

Jack Layton was a beacon of hope for many of us Canadians who want, who need better from our government. For those of us that believe in human rights for all humans, be they male or female, hetero or homosexual, white or black or Asian or native or Latin or European or whatever other denomination, Jack and his party seemed to be leading the charge for a better tomorrow. I didn't agree with everything they did or stood for, but by and large, they are the party of the people. And it is Jack Layton's dying wish that they remain so.

It is important for left-leaning Canadians to remember at this time that although Jack Layton may have been the face of the NDP, he was not the NDP itself. The NDP is a party, an ideology, that will carry on with the determination of its' deputy leader, its' caucus, its' party members and those of us who will ally and realign ourselves with making this country better for all in the future. Now is the time for increased political activity, increased awareness, increased empathy towards our fellow citizens. And now is the time to stand up for what we believe in, always with the resolute dignity and determination that Jack Layton made his trademark. Jack Layton believed in this country. As a white male, that is easier for him than for many others. However, he was not many others. Layton took seriously the plights of the people that go ignored by our ruling party. Layton cared about missing and murdered Aboriginal women. Layton cared about the elderly. Layton cared about minorities and oppressed groups within Canadian society. As should we all.

Before his death, Jack Layton wrote a letter to all Canadians, which I intend to re-post here, in its' entirety. Hopefully, this breaks no laws. The original can be found here.

August 20, 2011
Toronto, Ontario
Dear Friends,
Tens of thousands of Canadians have written to me in recent weeks to wish me well. I want to thank each and every one of you for your thoughtful, inspiring and often beautiful notes, cards and gifts. Your spirit and love have lit up my home, my spirit, and my determination.
Unfortunately my treatment has not worked out as I hoped. So I am giving this letter to my partner Olivia to share with you in the circumstance in which I cannot continue.
I recommend that Hull-Aylmer MP Nycole Turmel continue her work as our interim leader until a permanent successor is elected.
I recommend the party hold a leadership vote as early as possible in the New Year, on approximately the same timelines as in 2003, so that our new leader has ample time to reconsolidate our team, renew our party and our program, and move forward towards the next election.
A few additional thoughts:
To other Canadians who are on journeys to defeat cancer and to live their lives, I say this: please don’t be discouraged that my own journey hasn’t gone as well as I had hoped. You must not lose your own hope. Treatments and therapies have never been better in the face of this disease. You have every reason to be optimistic, determined, and focused on the future. My only other advice is to cherish every moment with those you love at every stage of your journey, as I have done this summer.
To the members of my party: we’ve done remarkable things together in the past eight years. It has been a privilege to lead the New Democratic Party and I am most grateful for your confidence, your support, and the endless hours of volunteer commitment you have devoted to our cause. There will be those who will try to persuade you to give up our cause. But that cause is much bigger than any one leader. Answer them by recommitting with energy and determination to our work. Remember our proud history of social justice, universal health care, public pensions and making sure no one is left behind. Let’s continue to move forward. Let’s demonstrate in everything we do in the four years before us that we are ready to serve our beloved Canada as its next government.
To the members of our parliamentary caucus: I have been privileged to work with each and every one of you. Our caucus meetings were always the highlight of my week. It has been my role to ask a great deal from you. And now I am going to do so again. Canadians will be closely watching you in the months to come. Colleagues, I know you will make the tens of thousands of members of our party proud of you by demonstrating the same seamless teamwork and solidarity that has earned us the confidence of millions of Canadians in the recent election. 2
To my fellow Quebecers: On May 2nd, you made an historic decision. You decided that the way to replace Canada’s Conservative federal government with something better was by working together in partnership with progressive-minded Canadians across the country. You made the right decision then; it is still the right decision today; and it will be the right decision right through to the next election, when we will succeed, together. You have elected a superb team of New Democrats to Parliament. They are going to be doing remarkable things in the years to come to make this country better for us all.
To young Canadians: All my life I have worked to make things better. Hope and optimism have defined my political career, and I continue to be hopeful and optimistic about Canada. Young people have been a great source of inspiration for me. I have met and talked with so many of you about your dreams, your frustrations, and your ideas for change. More and more, you are engaging in politics because you want to change things for the better. Many of you have placed your trust in our party. As my time in political life draws to a close I want to share with you my belief in your power to change this country and this world. There are great challenges before you, from the overwhelming nature of climate change to the unfairness of an economy that excludes so many from our collective wealth, and the changes necessary to build a more inclusive and generous Canada. I believe in you. Your energy, your vision, your passion for justice are exactly what this country needs today. You need to be at the heart of our economy, our political life, and our plans for the present and the future.
And finally, to all Canadians: Canada is a great country, one of the hopes of the world. We can be a better one – a country of greater equality, justice, and opportunity. We can build a prosperous economy and a society that shares its benefits more fairly. We can look after our seniors. We can offer better futures for our children. We can do our part to save the world’s environment. We can restore our good name in the world. We can do all of these things because we finally have a party system at the national level where there are real choices; where your vote matters; where working for change can actually bring about change. In the months and years to come, New Democrats will put a compelling new alternative to you. My colleagues in our party are an impressive, committed team. Give them a careful hearing; consider the alternatives; and consider that we can be a better, fairer, more equal country by working together. Don’t let them tell you it can’t be done.
My friends, love is better than anger. Hope is better than fear. Optimism is better than despair. So let us be loving, hopeful and optimistic. And we’ll change the world.
All my very best,
Jack Layton

Rest in peace, Jack Layton. Thank you for trying. Thank you for doing your best. 

Justice, At Last

I'm exhausted, so this'll be a quick one, but I couldn't miss the chance to post about how glad I am that Romeo Cormier got convicted of all six of the charges laid against him. If you're not familiar with the case, you can read the victims' testimony here, but beware that it does contain disturbing descriptions by the victim of what she went through.

I thought he was going to get off for sure. Cormier and his defense tried everything, from claiming the he and the victim were in cahoots together, and it was a botched plot to kill her husband, to insisting that Cormier could not possibly be held accountable for his actions due to his narcissistic personality. Despite the plethora of claims touting Cormiers' innocence, he has received a sentence of eighteen years, minus time already served. While this is much less than the life sentence that the crown (and concerned followers of the trial, such as myself) were hoping for, it is certainly better then the ten to twelve years the defense was bargaining for.

The fact that a rapist in a high profile rape case can be charged and convicted gives me a much needed glimmer of hope for society. While Cormier himself isn't a high-profile douchebag, the case did gain a lot of media attention. When such media attention is focused on a rape trial, it usually goes poorly for the victim, due to the fact we live in a rape-and-rape-apologist-culture. More than once during the course of this trial, it looked as though Cormier would get away with all he did to the victim, and at one point it even looked as though he might've convinced the court that she was to blame. Personally, I think eighteen years isn't enough for this asshole, but it's way better than I'd hoped for. Rot for a while, Romeo Cormier. Good riddance.

Has Anyone Even Asked?

Trigger Warning for rape discussion of brutality

The UK riots of the past week can be summed up in one word: terrifying. However, summing up anything in one word is problematic. One word is never enough, one word only conveys one point of view, and as usual, the point of view is that of the white, heterosexual male. Riots are frightening, horrible things, terrible for victims and innocent bystanders, but from the reports you're led to believe that causalities are few and the majority of damage has been done to property. I believe this to be a falsehood, because if it's predominately young men rioting, then you can bet that they're raping, too. Because, as we all remember, men will rape in the streets even in times of celebration.

The stories now are of reaction. How Britain will clean up, regroup, and change as a result of the riots, trying to find it's 'moral compass'. Prime Minister David Cameron says:

"This has been a wake-up call for our country. Social problems that have been festering for decades have exploded in our face," Cameron said in his prepared remarks for a planned Monday morning speech. "Do we have the determination to confront the slow-motion moral collapse that has taken place in parts of our country these past few generations?"

Okay, player. Fair enough. But are the riots even really being reported on accurately? And just who are you talking about when you say 'social problems' and 'moral collapse'? Are you talking about what happened to this girl? 

This is just about the only case of rape or sexual assault I could find concerning the UK riots. I find this highly suspect. A riot is an event that violent, heterosexual men revel in. Destruction, physical violence, power, trying to exert dominance over authority... you're telling me that isn't a recipe for rape? And yet, in the middle of a week's worth of rioting, there is only one case of sexual assault? And I had to search very specifically for it? I'm not naive enough to believe that the case I mentioned previously and will discuss momentarily is the only, isolated incident, so that means either other cases of rape during the UK riots are deliberately being covered up, or nobody gives enough of a shit to report them.

During the UK riots, a fifteen year old boy robbed and raped a thirteen year old girl. After demanding the girl hand over her cell phone, he asked "for a kiss". When the girl refused, he dragged her down an alley, threw her onto a pile of broken glass and garbage and raped her. Of course, the media paints the rapist in a sympathetic light. During the hearing the poor boy appeared "close to tears" and is described as "vulnerable and troubled". Let's examine that for a moment. The rapist was close to tears, vulnerable and troubled? Well, if I might to so bold as to ask, WHAT ABOUT THE VICTIM??? I'll bet she was a lot closer to tears than he was, as they were probably running down her face non-stop since the asshole raped her. I'll bet she's more vulnerable now than ever, since she's now a victim and is broken mentally and spiritually forever. I'll bet she's more troubled than this little shit could ever be, as she now has to see the world for what it really is, far younger than she should have to. But, of course, the poor boy, this must be so hard on him.

Want to hear a quote from the boys' mum, who is described as a "devoutly religious nurse"? I'm sure you do.

"We can't quite believe this. We are a good family with Christian values. He is not from a broken home."

 Ha. Because only people without "good Christian values" that aren't from broken homes ever rape. Here's another good one, this time from an uninvolved neighbor, doing the good neighbor victim-blamey thing, I've talked about before.

"The family are completely shocked by what has happened and feel very ashamed. The parents are hard-working members of a close-knit community and tried to do the best for their son. They were very strict with him - perhaps that's why he rebelled and fell in with bad company."

Gimme a goddamn break. This even takes a stab at blaming the parents, but let me point this out, just in case you're not paying full attention:

Nobody is blaming the rapist.

People are blaming the victim. People are blaming the riots. People are blaming the parents. People are blaming society (I can almost get behind that one), but nobody is looking directly at the rapist. How many times does THAT have to happen before people wise up and realize that this shit does not happen in a goddamn vacuum? 


Let me also point out that if one in four women are raped during "normal, everyday conditions", then it stands to reason that during a riot, that number would rise. And even if only 40% of victims report their rape during "normal, everyday conditions", then it stands to reason that due to increased rape during a riot, the number of reported rapes would also rise. So, how is it that we're only hearing about this one? Once again, let me reiterate, I'm not naive enough to believe that this is the one and only, isolated case of rape or sexual assault that has happened during the UK riots. Nobody seems to be telling about any others, and I had to dig to find out about this one, so this brings me round and about to the title of this post: Has anyone even asked? Does anyone in a position of news authority even care? Is there not interest in reporting the riots from this angle? People need to know. People deserve to know. And, in the very, very, VERY slim chance that there was only one case of rape or sexual assault during the riots, wouldn't THAT be a phenomenon worth reporting, too? Of course, I don't believe that, but either way, shouldn't someone, somewhere be asking what happened to women during the UK riots? I know I'm asking. If you're reading me, you're probably the type to ask these questions, too. Who will answer us?